Energy wars continue on trail
Barack Obama and John McCain continue to hammer each other today on energy policy, both knowing that high gas prices have the attention of voters.
Democrat Obama holds town halls in Youngstown and Berea, both industrial cities in the key swing state of Ohio.
In Youngstown, Obama said that McCain has "proposed an energy plan that’s nothing but four years more of the same," and that helps oil companies and not consumers, according to excerpts provided by the Obama campaign.
Obama says that "under Senator McCain’s plan, the oil companies get billions more, we don’t pay any less at the pump, and we stay in the same cycle of dependence on oil that got us into this crisis. The oil companies have placed their bet on Senator McCain, and if he wins, they will continue to cash in while our families and our economy suffer and our future is put in jeopardy.That’s the choice we face in this election. We can choose four years more of the same failed policies that have gotten us where we are. Four years more of oil companies calling the shots while hard working families are struggling. That’s what Senator McCain is offering."
Obama then promotes his own plan for alternative energy and green-collar jobs.
Trying to reinforce Obama's point about McCain't ties to Big Oil, the Democratic National Committee posted a web video that shows McCain as a puppet whose strings are being pulled by oil company lobbyists.
"Big Oil in the White House. We've seen this show before," the video concludes.
Republican McCain, meanwhile, plans to visit a nuclear plant outside Detroit to highlight his proposal to build 45 new nuclear plants by 2030. The Associated Press reports that it is the first such visit by a presidential candidate in recent years.
UPDATE: "Solving our national energy crisis requires an 'all of the above' approach," McCain plans to say, according to excerpts released by his campaign. "That will require aggressive development of alternative energies like wind, solar, tidal and bio-fuels. It also requires expanding traditional sources of energy like off shore drilling, clean coal, and nuclear power like the power produced at this plant here in Michigan.
"Senator Obama has said that expanding our nuclear power plants 'doesn't make sense for America.' He also says no to nuclear storage and reprocessing. I couldn't disagree more. I have proposed a plan to build additional nuclear plants. That means new jobs, and that means new energy. If we want to enable the technologies of tomorrow like plug-in electric cars, we need electricity to plug into."
"It is time for America to get serious about energy independence," McCain plans to say. "Our nation is sending $700 billion overseas every year to countries that don't like us very much. When I'm president that's going to stop. We're going to achieve energy independence, and we're going to do it by using every resource at our disposal to get the job done."
McCain and the Republicans call Obama "Dr. No" for opposing many of McCain's proposals, including saying that he is "not a proponent" of nuclear power.
But Obama's campaign says Obama does support "safe and secure" nuclear energy if issues including "security of nuclear fuel and waste, waste storage, and proliferation" are addressed.
Meanwhile, after accusing Obama of flip-flopping by now supporting limited offshore drilling, the McCain campaign criticized him this morning for not changing his position at all.
"Senator Obama's stance on offshore oil drilling has been mischaracterized," spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker said in a statement. "He has not changed his position. He has continually campaigned against additional drilling, calling the policy a 'gimmick' saying it was a 'scheme' and ridiculing those who support it. With his steadfast opposition to John McCain's 'all of the above' approach to our energy crisis, Americans should know that Barack Obama remains opposed to additional domestic oil drilling. Speaker Pelosi, MoveOn.org and the Sierra Club can take comfort from the fact that Barack Obama still opposes additional domestic oil drilling. Meanwhile, the American people can be sure that John McCain will do what is necessary to reduce this country's dependence on Middle East oil and bring down prices at the pump."
steam powered trucks and cars. easy. Technology exists.
Only thing the Stanley Steamer lacked was electronic ignition.
They were able to hit 150 MPH and steam powered construction equipment easily handles work that diesels do.
Just need to work on emission standards for the fuel, which can be anything that will make water boil: corn stalks, weeds, wood, coal, alcohol, hydrogen. Anything at all.
Why did they refute McCain's assertations that Obama does not support Nuclear power but did not refute Obama's assertations that McCain is in the pocket of big oil. Both statements were misleading and if you correct one, you should correct the other.
As a member of neither major party and a supporter of neither candidate, I can see quite plainly how biased this article is. It's not news so much as a campaign pamphlet in support of Obama.
Big oil and "windfall profits"? Since when is 8.5% profit excessive or windfall? How much of Exxon's profits are returned as retirement plans, research into alternative energy, etc.? Let's try a "windfall profit" approach on our own Govt which makes much more "profit" with no risk and no ROI to investors (our Congress is so oblivious and unconcerned that they are on "vacation" during a critical time).
Why don't you, the media, tell the whole story, put things into perspective, report on our elected legistors' failure to represent us?.
Gee, could your reporting be more one-sided in favor of Obama? The only good part about it is that it shows how Obama is full of words that having no meaning at all. Just accusations that are completely not true. Big oil and John McCain? Are you kidding?! The Republicans have been furiously trying to get the Democrats to allow energy independence and drilling (our oil rigs have withstood hurricanes without any spills), nuclear (nuclear energy is EXTREMELY safe) AND alternative sources. The only reason we're in the mess we're in now is because the Democrats keep blocking everything that has to do with this country not being dependent on terrorist countries to provide us oil. What is Obama's answer?
He said that if we only inflate our tires and have regular tune ups (are there any cars that still need tune ups) we wouldn't need to drill for oil. That is the most idiotic thing I've heard him say. You certainly provided the McCain side with as much coverage as Obama - one line! And you have a nerve to say they're battling it out? You are battling for Obama - the sheer propaganda is ridiculous. Do you think we are all so stupid? This isn't reporting. It's campaigning for Obama. You should be ashamed. But you won't be.
Obama,says I will tell you something I didn't say last week but act like I said that last week.
Mr McCain, please let us know what is really necessary to bring down prices at the pump?...Please do not shy from the truth....
30 years of the SAME democrat policy of NO OIL is why we are crunched today. Every other industrial country in the world has built nuclear plants and explored and expanded their oil capacity except us. We are behind because of a ridiculous politician panic in 1981 that banned oil exploration and drilling and a democrat party so against energy development unless it's "green only". No technology jumps from idea into market without decades of time. Real CHANGE would be to develop our own DOMESTIC oil and energy. Supply and demand is what we're stuck with and there is more demand than we have in domestic supply, ergo we buy more of others supply and that costs more than getting our own. We need more nuclear power plants, more drilling, lots more refineries and pipelines.
Neither McCain or Obama have a CLUE about anything. If this is the best we can do in the way of Presidential candidates, GOD HELP US ALL! McCain has flip-flopped on anything and everything he has ever said. Obama makes a good speech but couldn't lead a group in silent prayer and doesn't have enough experience to run a lemonaid stand. GOD HELP THIS COUNTY, cause we are gonna need it no matter which one of these idiots gets elected.
Very odd about Obama considering the widely publicized quotes of him in recent days as changing his position to support a "compromise" on off-shore drilling. At this point McCain is going after whgat 70% plus of Americans want - oil from our resources instead of hostile foreign countries, but apparently Senator Obama thinks he knows better and doesn't want to do what American's are asking for.
Rather than lowering the price of gas, why not give every tax payer a 1% income
tax rebate. This will take care of the gas prices going up. While we are at it,
why not also give a 1% sales tax or property tax rebate.
Our next president should push for better math at school so people can learn
to count and to not fall for chip tricks like drilling for oil, etc...
If we look at both candidates, they are about the same. How can we have a
real democracy when only 1/2 of the people vote and of those, only 1/2 need
to support a candidate, resulting with a president that is elected with only 1/4 of
the potential votes. We should change the constitution and require that president,
legislators etc be require to get 1/2+1 of the eligible voters.
Nice focus on Senator McCain's energy plan, oh wait,
Watch Obama jump on the Cheney bandwagon now, that the vice presidential choice is about to happen. The DNC has already put up a webpage comparing the unannounced Vice Presidential pick to Dick Cheney. They don't even know who it is going to be but have developed an early strategy to try and tie whomever it is to Cheny, just like they're trying to tie McCain to Bush. Are democrats so stupid to believe that anyone but a loyal democrat will believe this swill. Well, from what I've seen democrats will believe anything their party leadership tells them. Remember Jeremiah Wright was just a casual acquaintance for Barack! (For 20 years). Tony Rezko was just a campaign supporter. Barack was also just an acquaintance of a terrorist bomber who bombed the pentagon and wished he had done more, How about his relationship to Louis Farakan? Are all democrats so blind they can't see this character for who he really is. There is only one way to tell when Barack Obama is lying. His lips are moving.
McCain's a trollop for Big Oil...just look at the money that he's raked in from Big Oil since HE flip-flopped on off-shore drilling.
McCain wants to get in the same bed with Big Business and Big Oil that Bush and Cheney have been romping around in for the past seven years while our economy's led to the rich getting reacher----everyone else's inflation-adjusted income has stagnated. But not if you're in the top 1% of all earners. Are you? If not, why on earth would you vote for these failed policies?
Obama's support for off-shore drilling is sad, not least because it indicates the need for any candidate to appeal to the groundlings whose only news comes from Fox (a station whose grip on reality cannot really be said to be very firm). Wake up! McCain will keep things as they are. If you think they are dandy, then vote for him. He'll make sure things keep running as they have since 2001. If you think that we need to do something different, vote Obama. He recognizes the need to do more than just keep the well-off happy.
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